Armenians Building 1st Church In Broward Coconut Creek

January 29, 1986|By Alan Cherry, Staff Writer

Ground has been broken for Broward County`s only Armenian church.

The new $1 million Armenian Church of South Florida, to be about one block north of Hillsboro Boulevard on Lyons Road, will give Armenians their first permanent church in Broward, said church member Jerry Minassian.

``Currently we are in a funding drive and are accepting donations from all over the country,`` Minassian said.

The Armenian parishioners have been holding Sunday services the past few years at the Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Tamarac.

``We have two portions to our service. The first portion is in Armenian and the second, a sermon, is in both Armenian and English,`` Minassian said. ``The actual services are traditional Armenian, which goes back thousands of years.``

The goal of the church and its programs is to keep the Armenian culture thriving, especially among young adults and children, Minassian said.

A permanent home, he added, would mean church members would have better opportunities to have structured classes and instructions in the history of Armenians.

``There are a number of children who know nothing about Armenian but are learning for the first time,`` Minassian said.

The church has a hundred or more followers in Palm Beach County and Broward, but the number of parishioners more than doubles during the tourist season, Minassian said.

There is an Armenian church in Dade County.

Men`s and women`s clubs are sponsored through the church. To help raise money to build the church, events like bazaars have been held.

The new church will be about 10,000 square feet, sitting on a five-acre parcel.

Minassian said parishioners first hoped to have the new building completed by Easter, but now it appears the building won`t be finished until fall.